Through the Glass
by Chrys-DASL
Summary: Muffy wins a contest to be on her favorite celebrity's talk show. She thinks this is a great honor, but she'll soon discover her opportunity comes with several life lessons as well. One-shot. For my Infinite Theme Challenge. See my profile for details.


_Through The Glass_

Muffy nearly pranced around Lakewood Elementary's cafeteria as she showed off her winning hat design. She had won a design contest just the evening before, and the entire school now knew exactly who she was and what she'd done. She was only in fourth grade, yet her popularity rivaled every fifth grader in the school, and Muffy didn't mind one bit. She was thrilled to be so amazing at such a young age, and winning this contest was just one more thing to make her better than everyone else.

Francine eyed Muffy carefully as she sat down at the lunch table. Muffy noticed her stare but said nothing to her as she began to eat her lunch. Sue Ellen and Maria sat down, eying the cafeteria carefully. When they saw Muffy, they realized why so many people were looking in their direction.

Sue Ellen sighed, "She put on a little fashion show for them, didn't she?" she asked. Francine nodded firmly as she plucked a mandarin orange from her fork. Sue Ellen shook her head, "You know, Muffy, a lot of people worked hard on their designs too. You shouldn't prance around here and flaunt it at them."

"I am not flaunting, Sue Ellen. People asked for a closer look, so I gave it to them. I did nothing wrong," Muffy smiled. "Besides, it's not every day someone from Lakewood does anything fashionable. This contest was for all the elementary schools in the district. These people should be counting their blessings that I finally brought the win here."

"She doesn't seem to know what all comes with it, Sue Ellen. Besides, we all know how Muffy is. This will eventually blows over when she realizes she's actually being mean to everyone, not nice," Francine said, forcing a weak smile onto her face.

Muffy scoffed, "I resent your statements, Francine Frensky. I'm not being mean to anyone, and I know exactly what comes along with my prize. I get a five hundred dollar gift card for a very awesome boutique in Metropolis, the same boutique that hosted the event this year, and I get an interview with the paper."

Francine shook her head, "You also get to appear on Capri's fashion show. I'm only telling you so you don't bombard us now that you've found out. We're aware of the prize, and honestly, none of us are interested in Capri. We're happy for you and everything, but you really should tone it down a notch."

Francine's cold words fell on deaf ears. Muffy didn't realize she'd get to meet her idol, Capri Devapida, and now that she knew, she couldn't think straight due to the excitement. She watched Capri's show every time it aired, and now, she was going to make an appearance on that show. She had to figure out what to wear, and she could only imagine what it would be like.

For the rest of the day, Muffy was filled with such daydreams. In one, Capri loved Muffy's fashion sense so much that she made her a permanent co-host. In another, a guest celebrity made her a personal assistant due to her amazing sense of style. And in yet another, she becomes the host of her own show after being discovered by Capri's agents.

Muffy was fixated on the event, and she was elated to finally get the call from Capri's managers. Muffy would appear on the show that Friday night, and it would be prerecorded the previous afternoon. That made her appearance two days away, but the actual recording was the next day. Muffy was nervous, but she had an outfit in mind. It went perfectly with her winning hat design, and Muffy knew she'd be a huge hit.

The television studio loomed up over the car as Bailey drove Muffy and her mother to the taping of Capri's show. The studio was on the outskirts of Metropolis, and Muffy had to leave school slightly early to make the taping on time. Her classmates were relieved that she left early. Muffy had been overly excited since she got the news, and now that it was actually happening, she was talkative due to her nervousness.

"Wow, Mom, look at this place! Oh, I just love that fountain. It's so much more posh than the one we have at home. OOH! And look at that!" Muffy pointed as they walked through the studio's doors. When they stepped inside, Muffy's mouth fell open. They were immediately faced with Capri's set, which swarmed with crew members as they prepared for the taping.

"You must be Mary Alice Crosswire," a bored yet nervous-looking intern said. When Muffy nodded, the woman led her away. Another crew member ushered Millicent into the studio's seats as Muffy disappeared into the inner hallways.

Muffy was quickly placed in a makeup chair as people swarmed around her. The outfit she picked out was quickly replaced by another one they picked out for her, and Muffy noticed it didn't look as good. She was confused and hurt as she sat in the chair, not even enjoying the primping process like she normally did.

And then, she heard the voice she knew she'd recognize immediately, the voice of Capri.

"No! I asked for that brand of water, that one right there! Like, why do you keep getting it wrong? Do you like not like working for me or something? Ugh! You're all so useless!" Capri spat. Muffy immediately heard a plastic water bottle slam against the wall. The area got quiet, allowing her to hear the water from inside hit something—she'd thrown her open bottle at a crew member.

No one said a word as the preparations continued. Muffy was led into a different room that smelled of hair spray, and within a few minutes, her hair was being styled by two different interns. Muffy kept an ear out for Capri, and sure enough, she soon began to yell again.

"What do you mean by that? Why are people leaving? Make them stay! Those seats have to be like full!" Capri spat. The intern was apologetic, promising to fill seats, but soon he was in the room with Muffy, ignoring her as he expressed concerns to another intern. A group of five left due to an emergency, and two more were about to leave as well. How were they going to find seven people on such short notice?

"People used to line up outside," one stylist said to the other. The other one nodded, "Yeah, and then Capri raged on a group of kids and that all went south. I don't know how he kept it out of the papers. She must've threatened them with lies like she always does." The other interned laughed, nodding as she put the finishing touch on Muffy's hair. Like that, she was ready for the show.

Muffy waited in a small hallway as Capri took to the stage. She continued her behavior as the stage underwent its final preparations. That plant was in the wrong spot, that person in the crowd was distracting her, her water wasn't in the right spot—nothing could be done correctly for Capri, and Muffy felt insecure about appearing on the show.

Just the day before, Muffy dreamed of this moment, but she expected Capri to be nice. Instead, she was a jerk, and Muffy could see a little bit of herself in Capri. She did the same to her friends whenever they were doing a public outing, even if it was just a trip to the mall. She flaunted her accomplishments, and worst of all, she was just a mean person to the people she should care more about.

Muffy felt almost lifeless as her moment came. Once most of Capri's demands were met, the taping began. Capri sounded dull and angry, zapping Muffy's energy during her appearance. She wondered if her friends would notice if they watched, but she decided to drop the subject. If they watched, so be it, and Muffy would watch her episode as well. But after Capri's behavior, it would be the last show she'd watch, and she knew she'd work on her own behavior as well.

Francine eyed Muffy carefully as they sat in her room. Normally they would make a beeline for the television around this time, but today, Muffy made no effort to get up. In fact, Francine had noticed a big change in how Muffy acted lately. Francine was confused, and she closed her magazine to get Muffy's attention.

"Are you sick or something?" Francine asked. Muffy looked confused. Francine shook her head, "You've got to be sick. You're not trading celebrity gossip as much, and you never even asked us to watch your show. Why did you stop bragging so quickly? What went wrong?"

"Nothing went wrong, exactly, but I learned some things from Capri. She's a diva, and I've decided I don't want to act like her anymore. She was really mean to her interns and the audience. They edit the show to make her sound happier. They shouldn't have to do that for her, and I know I'll end up like her if I don't stop. So, I've stopped flaunting. I won't critique your style unless you ask. And most of all, I'll try to be nicer than people. You'll have to help me though," Muffy smiled. "Just tell me like it is, Francine. If I'm being a diva, just let me know."

"Wow, I didn't expect that. I mean, I'd heard rumors that Capri was really bad to her staff, but I never said anything because I thought you knew. You just know more about celebrities than I do," Francine said.

Muffy nodded, "I normally do know more, but there's a lot about Capri that people don't know. She's just dishonest, and her fashion advice isn't really that good. Now that I know the truth, I know she was lucky to have me on her show, not the other way around."

Francine smiled, "I think I'll like this new Muffy, but you better keep it up. And I'd tell the others. They think you got kicked off the show or something because it didn't air the other night."

Muffy was perplexed, but then she remembered why she'd seen the taping. She was given a DVD of the show, but when she moved to the television to find the episode, she found that nothing had come on that Friday night. For some reason, Capri's show wasn't on at all.

While Muffy was curious, she didn't look into the matter. She decided to be done with Capri and her crazy behavior. And on cue, the network decided to be done with Capri too. One of her blowups after the taping went public, and her show was cut immediately. Muffy's episode never aired, and the show disappeared from the air waves. And no one really minded not seeing her on television, including her once number one fan, Muffy.

~End

Theme 76: Favorite Show

Theme 132: Meeting A Celebrity

Theme 148: Fashion Nightmare

Themes from my Infinite Arthur Theme List Challenge. For more info, see my profile. For the complete list, see my deviantArt profile, SS-Chrys.


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